Practice Areas Boca Raton Car Accident Lawyer Tire Blowout Accidents

Hurt in a Crash Caused by a Tire Blowout? The Grife Law Firm Can Help.

Typically, tires should last for tens of thousands of miles under normal conditions. In some cases, though, a tire will suddenly burst and lose pressure, causing a vehicle to careen out of control and collide with other cars. A combination of factors may cause tire blowout accidents, and people hurt in such collisions may be able to pursue compensation for their harm from multiple parties. If you were harmed in a crash caused by a tire blowout, you should speak to an attorney as soon as possible to assess your potential claims. The Boca Raton car accident attorneys at The Grife Law Firm can analyze the circumstances surrounding your harm and help you seek the best outcome available under the facts surrounding your collision.

Tire Blowouts and Other Tire-Related Accidents

Tire blowouts usually occur when a tire suffers a sudden loss of air and pressure, due to a puncture caused by an object in the road or a pothole. Blowouts can also be caused by slow leaks in tires, over-or under-inflation, or unevenly distributed weight in a vehicle. In some instances, a defect in a tire will cause a blowout. Other defects, such as separation between a tread or steel belt and a tire casing, can lead to accidents as well. When tire issues occur, they usually cause drivers to lose control of their cars and crash into other vehicles on the road. They can also cause rollover accidents, leading to brain injuries, fractures, organ damage, and death.

Parties Who May Be Responsible for Tire Blowout Accidents

Improper maintenance may cause tire blowouts and other tire issues, but they often occur regardless of whether a driver performs regular upkeep or drives with due care. Proving liability in lawsuits arising out of tire blowout accidents may be complicated since this often involves numerous claims against multiple parties.

For example, an injured person may be able to pursue damages from the company that produced and sold the tire. Under Florida law, manufacturers and sellers of products, including tires, are obligated to make sure that their products are reasonably safe for their intended purposes. An entity that breaches this duty may be held civilly liable.

There are numerous claims that a plaintiff can assert in a product liability lawsuit, including strict liability. A strict liability claim does not require a plaintiff to prove intent or negligence. Instead, he or she merely must show that the defendant manufactured or distributed a product that was unreasonably dangerous and that the plaintiff suffered harm while using the product as anticipated. The plaintiff must also show that the product was not modified after it left the defendant’s care. Products can be dangerous because of errors in the design or manufacturing process or due to inadequate warnings.

Usually, a plaintiff in a product liability case must obtain an expert to explain the defects that the product harbored and link them to the harm sustained. Under Florida Statute 90.702, a person who possesses experience, training, skills, or education in a subject area will be qualified to testify as an expert. Often, experts in auto product liability cases are engineers.

Even if a tire is safely designed, it may become unsafe if it is not maintained correctly. Thus, a person injured in a crash caused by a tire blowout may be able to pursue negligence claims against the owner of the vehicle involved. To prove negligence, a plaintiff must show that the defendant owed the plaintiff a duty, which the defendant breached, and that the breach of the duty led to the plaintiff’s harm.